Mazda CX-9 or CX-5?
During the sixties and early seventies, my uncle’s go-to vehicle was the full-size V8 powered four-door sedan, culminating with a mega-yacht Mercury Marquis Brougham. With four teenage boys and a full-size trailer as a summer vacation essential, this was a good choice.
As the boys each turned 16, car use allotment became a major issue. Who gets the car? Who’s paying for all this gas? How did the tires get so worn so quickly? Why are the wheel lug nuts sheared off? And again?
Time for a rethink.
With trailer towing still a requirement, getting rid of a full-size V8-powered vehicle was not in the cards. But having a second car might help on the vehicular battlefield.
So my first experience with Mazda was in the late seventies when my uncle picked up a Mazda GLC, or as they liked to call it “Great Little Car”. Certainly no Marquis Brougham, but perfect for its intended use as a commuter vehicle. Easy to park and easier on gas, the beginnings of a new automotive world order was now in full swing.
Fast forward 40+ years and I’m driving a Mazda CX-9 and CX-5 back to back. Light years ahead of the GLC, and the Marquis for that matter, both vehicles exude the driving characteristics I look for in a vehicle – great on the highway, but also very enjoyable on Nova Scotia’s back roads.
But how do they fit in with my lifestyle?
Today, the CX-5 is a perfect fit for me. Room for odds and ends in the back, not to mention adults in the back seat. Lots of extra room if I dump the passengers and enlarge the trunk. Perfect for now.
But not ideal for the twenty years younger me.
This is where the Mazda CX-9 shines. Back then I needed space and flexibility. A full load was the norm, not the exception. Scouts, highland dancing, moving people around. But still great fun to drive.
Since I believe in an idealized world, I’ve decided to express this viewpoint with a series of great Mazda driving scenarios. The world as it should be.
